Please Post Your Famous Portrait Artists' Information Below:


Diego Velazquez
Born 1599 in Spain
Died 1660
He mostly painted portraits of royalty but also did landscapes mythology and religious figures
Learned to paint all around Europe
He lived in Madrid as the court painter
velazquez_isabel.jpgQueen Isabel, 1632

Anthony Van Dyck
He was studying art with Hendrick van Balen. He was born March 22 1599- December 9 1641. -Born in Antwerp, Belgium
By fifteen he was an accomplished artist.
He was born in London but then had moved to Italy for 6 years before returning to London to paint for the king.
b) Anthony was a very accomplished Flemish Artist. He had become the leading court painter in England. He had mainly done portraits of Charles I of England and his family and court. He had also done some etching on the side.
-Painted Charles I and Henrietta Maria many times
-Also painted biblical and mythological subjects
-Was an important innovator of watercolor and etching
-Fell ill in France and went to London as quick as possible and died at his home at Blackfriars

marion.pngCharles I of England, 1635

Elizabeth Vigee leBrun
She was mostly a self-taught artist who grew up in France. After her father’s death, she earned enough money painting portraits to support her mother and younger brother. In 1778, she was called to Versailles to be the official painter of the Queen Marie Antoinette. In 1783, she was accepted to the French Academy of Arts, which was a huge accomplishment for her because most women were not admitted to such programs. Several years after her acceptance in 1789 during the French Revolution, she fled France, and traveled throughout Europe all the while internationally establishing her reputation. She eventually became a member of the Academies of Rome, Florence, Bologna, St. Petersburg, and Berlin. While apart of the Academies, she painted portraits of the heads of state and aristocrats in order to support her family. In 1801, she moved to London where she painted pictures of the court and Lord Byron and finished out her successful painting career. Vigee leBrun specialized in painting portraits.

443px-Vigée-Lebrun_Marie_Antoinette_1783.jpgMarie Antoinette, 1783

EDGAR DEGAS
•Born July 19, 1834
•Born in Paris, France
•Lived in Paris
•Admitted into Ecole des Beaux-Arts
•Took trips (Italy, Louisiana, etc.) where he studied and learned more about his art style, and continued his research in art

b. What kind of work did this artist do? (Was this person a portrait painter, or did s/he do other kinds of things, and if so, what were they?) If you have an unknown artist, you won’t find this info.
•Photographer
•Portrait painter
•Sculptor
•Drawing
•One of the founders of Impressionalism
•Pastel portraits
olivia.pngPortrait of James Tissot, 1867-68

Thomas Gainsborough
• Born in 1727 in Sudbury, Suffolk, England
• Studied art in England in 1740s under Hubert Gravelot and William Hogarth
• Married Margaret Burr in 1740s
• Lived on wife’s £200 annuity
• Work didn’t sell very well
• Moved thru Ipswich, Bath, and London
• Submitted paintings to the Society of Arts, Royal Academy
• Worked for royalty such as King George
• Lost royal painter job to rival
He painted landscapes, but later moved on to portraits and painting royalty
Picture_2.pngPortrait of George III, 1781

Jacques-Louis David
He drew portraits in pencil, painted portraits, painted scenes from history
• Born August 30, 1748 in Paris, Died– December 29, 1825
• François Boucher taught him painting
• Attended Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in Paris
• Attempted to win the Prix de Rome, an art scholarship to the French Academy in Rome, four times between 1770 and 1774
o He lost and tried to starve himself to death, but later he won it in 174
• Taught and influenced by Joseph-Marie Vien, who was director at the French Academy in Rome
• After attending the Academy of Rome for 5 years, he moved back to Paris. In around 1780, he married Marguerite Charlotte, had 4 kids, and moved to Rome.
• Supported French Revolution
• Classicism and romanticism painting style

recamier.jpgMadame Recamier, 1800

Thomas Hart Benton
Thomas Hart Benton was born in Neosho, Missouri in 1889.
Benton spent a good chunk of his life in New York, where he lived as a poor painter for around ten years. At the peak of Benton’s career, he made a name for himself as a realistic painter. At a time when unusual art forms became popular, Benton was working on colossal murals and bold paintings that reflected his simple American life, occasionally historical, but mostly of typical people in the middle of hard work. He eventually moved back to Missouri. At one point in his life, he began to paint subjects in the nude. In this particular piece, Benton painted his friend George A. Hough.
Born April 15, 1889
Died January 19, 1975
Born in Neosho Missouri
Spent most of his artistic life in Paris, France. His style changed dramatically when he enlisted in the Navy- His drawings became more realistic sketches of ship work and life.
Influenced by El Greco and taught by John Pollack
He was a painter but most importantly a muralist.

Picture_3.pngNew England Editor, 1946

John Neagle
Born- November 4, 1796 in Boston, Massachusetts
Died- September 17, 1865 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
He spend most of his career in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where he created much of his work and studied art. Pirtro Ancora and Thomas Wilson taught him about drawing and painting. He also served as the director of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine arts. He also founded the Artist's Fund Society of Philadelphia.
b. What kind of work did this artist do? (Was this person a portrait painter, or did s/he do other kinds of things, and if so, what were they?) If you have an unknown artist, you won’t find this info.
John Neagle painted only portraits of people. His subjects included social figures, politicians, professionals, and merchants.

431px-John_Neagle_001.jpg Pat Lyon at the Forge, 1826-27

Peter Paul Rubens
A. Peter Paul Rubens was born in Germany but left at an early age to escape religious persecution (his father was a Calvinist). After his Father’s death he moved back to Antwerp, Germany and was raised as a Catholic. His religious influences where a great influence on his painting subjects. Early in his life he received training as an artist and by twenty-one was a prominent master painter. He became one of the most important Baroque painters and was a fan of the master painter Titan.
B. Religion, as said above was a major influence but his painting embraced a wide variety of that era’s styles and subjects. His art had a large inflection of color, drama, and emotion, although at his later life he turned to painting landscapes and portraits. His paintings often seem to be capturing a moment, like many Baroque pieces.
01medici.jpgThe Arrival of Marie de Medici in France, 1622-23

John Singer Sargent
a. When, where did s/he live, study art, work?
He was an American portraitist but studied and spent most of his life in Europe. He was born in Florence but taught in France and came to America at 21. He finally settled in England to be his final location after years of travel.
b. What kind of work did this artist do? (Was this person a portrait painter, or did s/he do other kinds of things, and if so, what were they?) If you have an unknown artist, you won’t find this info.
John Singer Sargent was considered one of the best and “most celebrated” portraitist of his time but at the peak of his career he left portraits to paint landscapes and watercolors.
Born in Florence, Italy, Sargent worked on and studied art throughout Europe, mainly Italy and France. Baroque artists, such as Velazquez, influenced his works. He worked specifically as a portrait painter and became infamous in France for his portrait Madame X due to the fact that the public found it sexually provocative.
Daughters_of_Edward_Darley_Boit.jpgThe Daughters of Edward Darley Boit, 1881
300px-sargent_madamex.jpeg
Madame X by John Singer Sargent (1884)
Madame X, 1884

Raphael Santi
Born in Urbino, Italy in 1483.
He learned his first techniques of painting from his father. At 17 his dad sent him to Perugia to be an apprentice. In his four years there his teacher taught him as much as he could. His most famous of his early works was Marry of the Virgin, 1504. Later he began to introduce elements into his paintings, which showed his interests in the achievements of the new age. Later he spent another four years in Florence using the local styles and techniques. After he was summoned to Rome by the pope and for 12 years worked for two popes. One of his most famous paintings is The School of Athens. Raphael did mostly paintings and portrait paintings. He also was a drawer and an architect. A building that is still standing today that Raphael is well known for designing is the Chigi Chapel.
• Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance.
• Born in Urbino, Italy and died in Rome, Italy at age 37 on his birthday.
• Forms the trinity of painters with Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.
• Many works remain in the Vatican.
• Extremely influential in his lifetime.
• Best known for his Madonnas and large figure compositions in the Vatican.
Pope_Leo_X.pngPope Leo X with Two Cardinals, 1518

Alice Neel
Born: January 28, (1900) in Pennsylvania
Enrolled in Pennsylvania School of Design for Women (1921) graduated (1925)
Nervous Breakdown (1930)
Started to work as a portrait artist (1930)
Received an Arts and Letters Award (1969)
Awarded Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts for Moore College of Art (1971)
Elected to the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters (1976)
Received a National Women's Caucus for Art award for outstanding achievement in art (1979)
Died October 13 in New York City (1984)
Only a Portrait Painter (no other paintings/drawings)
Soyer_Brothers.pngThe Soyer Brothers (Raphael and Moses), 1973

Francisco Goya
a) Francisco Goya created most of his works in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s, and lived from lived in Spain during his childhood. He studied art while being an apprentice to the painter José Luján. And later studied with Anton Raphael Mengs, a painter who was very popular with Spanish royalty.
2. Artist Works
b) Francisco painted many portraits of Spanish royalty including the Count of Floridablanca and both the Duke and Duchess of Osuna. After becoming a painter to the nobility of Spain, Goya entered a dark period when his wife Josefa died. He created once again very graphic and unsettling pieces that were referred to as the black paintings.
c) Self-Portrait with Dr. Arrieta was a painting of himself that he created of him being nursed to health by his trusty doctor in the 1819. The piece was created in 1820. Francisco had great trusrt in his doctor and thought of Dr. Arrieta as having truly saved his life.
goya_dr_arrieta.jpgSelf-Portrait with Dr. Arrieta, 1820

Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Van Gogh was born March 30, 1853 and Died July 29, 1890. Van Gogh, considered one of the greatest artists of all time, mostly did Impressionism and Neo-Impressionism pieces, but also did many famous self-portraits.
Van Gogh began his art career in 1880. For many years he worked for art dealers. After this occupation, he began to create many of his own paintings. One of Van Gogh’s most famous portraits is called “Portrait of Dr. Gachet.”
The subject, Dr. Paul Gachet lived and worked close to Van Gogh in the town of Auvers-sur-Oise, a suburb of Paris. Gachet, an amateur painter was hired by Theo Van Gogh to treat Vincent. Both Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gachet shared the same passion of painting and seemed a perfect pair. Months later, after completing the portrait of Gachet, Van Gogh became ill and started to doubt the usefulness of his doctor. Gachet was later blamed for Van Gogh’s suicide. Many thought he was never up to the task and only made Van Gogh worse.
external image portrait%20of%20dr%20gachet.jpgPortrait of Dr. Gachet, 1890


Diego Rivera
1886-1957 born in Mexico, studies art in Madrid, goes back to Mexico to paint murals, eventually earns commission of Mexican Government and is catapulted into stardom. Marries Frida Kahlo in 1929. Known for his active communist sympathies.

Painted mainly murals on buildings, but he also painted many portraits of Frida Kahlo.

RiveraFrida.jpg
Frida Kahlo, 1940











Chuck Close
-Born July 5, 1940 in Monroe, Washington
-He attended Yale and got a Master of Fine Arts degree in 1964
-He was an art teacher a the university of Massachusetts
-Painter and photographer
-Made very large portraits from pictures, known as photorealism
close_chamberlain.jpgJohn, 1997

Gian Lorenzo Bernini
• 1598-1680 in Naples
• Was a sculptor, architect, and painter
• Son of a sculptor and studied under his father
• Was a highly skilled and respected sculptor from a very young age
• His first works were inspired by antique Hellenistic culture
borghese.jpgBust of Scipione Borghese, 1632

Robert Shetterly
- Born in Cincinnati in 1946
- English Literature Major from Harvard (Also took creative classes)
- Active in Civil Rights/ Anti war efforts
- Moved to Maine in 1970.
- He did the editorial page drawings for the Maine Times newspaper, illustrated National Audubon's children's newspaper Audubon Adventures, and approximately 30 books.
-Drawing, printmaking, painting, and etchings are his areas.
Picture_1.pngRachel Corrie, 2007

John Singleton Copley
revere.jpgPaul Revere, 1768-1770